It is known to employ flexible roof covers for automotive vehicles. For example, a flexible roof cover can be retracted by winding it around a spring loaded roller and such designs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,245,278 to Sherman issued Nov. 6, 1917. More recent variations of single and flexible sunroof covers are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,577 to Omoto et al. issued Oct. 6, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,378 to Mather et al. issued Aug. 31, 1999; and U.S. Patent Application Publication 2004/0017097 to Albert et al. issued Jan. 29, 2004.
Various attempts have also been made to allow vertical and rear accessibility to a storage compartment in an otherwise enclosed vehicle. Such designs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,478,368 to de Gaillard issued Nov. 12, 2002; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,485,094 to Corder et al. issued Nov. 26, 2002. In addition, trucks that have interiors that are adaptable to various configurations to increase cargo space. Such designs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,727 to Storc et al. issued Aug. 10, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 6,478,355 to Van Eden et al. issued Nov. 12, 2002; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20020089204 to Fisher published Jul. 11, 2002, as well as is currently available in the GMC Envoy XUV. Although the above patents solve some of the problems in the art, they are limited in the application for the class of automotive vehicle known as sport utility vehicles (SUV)
In accordance with the present invention, an open air system for a motor vehicle includes a forward flexible roof portion with a pair of tracks, a rear flexible roof portion with a pair of tracks, a seal between the forward and rear roof portions, at least one movement mechanism and at least one actuator. Other aspects of the present invention include forming a barrier with the rear roof section between a passenger area and a cargo area of a vehicle.
It should be noted that these figures are intended to exemplify the general characteristics of the invention for the purpose of the description of such embodiments herein. These figures may not precisely reflect the characteristics of any given embodiment and is not necessarily intended to define or limit specific embodiments within the scope of this invention.